More Federal Election Scorecards

This is a last minute follow-up to the January 19 post Federal Elections 2006 Scorecard - Where the Parties Stand.

There a number of additional organizations that produced evaluations of the platforms of the major parties in tomorrow's federal elections. So, if you are suffering from election information overload, here is another instalment to make you even more confused.

• Ranking the Parties’ Tax-Cut Promises (C.D. Howe Institute): "If anything, this election proves that tax cuts can be popular. However, from a long-term perspective, a key issue is whether the tax relief will substantially improve Canada’s competitiveness by encouraging work and investment. None of the tax proposals in this election are brave policies that would lead to fundamental tax reform. The analysis below suggests that the broad-based income and sales tax cuts being discussed will offer minor improvements to Canada’s competitive advantage in the next five years."
• Parties Respond to ACTRA's Election Questionnaire (Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists) : "Every major political party except the Conservatives have come forward with their responses to ACTRA's three questions on culture. ACTRA is disappointed that the Conservatives failed to respond and that the Liberals don't appear to grasp the severity of the crisis in Canadian TV drama. "
• CARP members want to know your party's stand on... (Canada's Association for the 50plus): the association sent out a questionnaire on issues such as the creation of a stand-alone Seniors' Minister, healthcare for seniors, pensions, grandparents' access to grandchildren in custody cases, mandatory retirement and elder abuse
• CBA Tackles Access to Justice on Behalf of Canada's Lawyers (Canadian Bar Association): "Access to justice is in crisis in this country — a fact that Canadian leaders must recognize and act upon. Many people do not qualify for publicly funded legal assistance, even when interests fundamental to their life, liberty, personal security and equality are at stake." CBA President Brian Tabor wrote to the leaders of the five major political parties to ask how they intended to improve legal aid eligibility
• Election 2006 - Get involved, stay involved (Canadian Medical Association): "As in past elections, we have produced a CMA’s Voters’ Guide, which we hope will help you make an informed decision when you enter the polling station to vote. This Voters’ Guide provides details on where the parties stand on key health care issues along with other useful election-related information. " The CMA questioned the main parties on access, wait time reduction, health sector human resources, public health and the GST on physician practices
• Election 2006 survey of party leaders on food & health policy (Centre for Science in the Public Interest): the Centre is a consumer health advocacy organization focussing on nutrition and food safety. The survey asked parties where they stood on changing federal laws to ban advertising to children, expanding mandatory nutrition labelling, amending the Excise Tax Act to shift consumption taxes from healthful foods to nutrient-poor foods, including publicly funded nutrition counselling services under Medicare, banning trans-fat vegetable oils, etc.
• Invite sent to the parties - 11 questions regarding environmental issues (Greenpeace): "Greenpeace is concerned that, while Canada may appear to be a global environmental leader as the host country of this meeting, the environment will fail to be a priority during the upcoming election campaign. The timing of this campaign provides an excellent opportunity for Canada to demonstrate a high level of leadership on environmental issues." The questions sent to the parties were related to federal nuclear and fossil fuel subsidies, radioactive waste management, offshore oil exploration, protecting forests, mandatory labelling of genetically modified foods, and deepsea trawling
• Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada Election Survey: parties were asked for their stance on an anti-obesity strategy, tax incentives to encourage physical activity and healthy eating, and the use of the gas tax transfer deal with the provinces to invest in recreation centres and "active" modes of transportation infrastructure (bike lanes, biking trails, walking trails and public transit)
• Election 2006 - The Federal Party Platforms (Make Poverty History Campaign): "Compare and contrast how the federal political parties promise to achieve Make Poverty History's campaign goals: More and Better Aid, Debt Cancellation, Trade Justice, End Child Poverty in Canada."
• Where do the federal parties stand on cleaning up our air? (Ontario Clean Air Alliance): the parties were asked about the phase-out of dirty coal-fired power plants in Ontario, the expansion of Canada’s east-west electricity transmission grid, and subsidies for the construction or retrofit of nuclear power plants
• Political Parties Respond To OCASI Survey (Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants): the survey asked leaders of major political parties questions on issues that are important to immigrant and refugee groups, such as implementation of a Refugee Appeal Division under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, the backlog in family class applications, the situation of non-status foreigners in Canada, the funding of settlement services, labour market integration of newcomers, the legal rights of migrant workers, and the increasing racialization of poverty